The college guide to peace studies programs

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This guide provides an overview of 40 American and Canadian college and university programs that offer bachelor’s degrees – i.e., majors – in which the study of peace is oriented toward understanding the psychological and socio-economic roots of harmful conflict. Almost all of the included programs emphasize reducing violence and addressing injustice as part of the peacebuilding process. Some are within institutions that offer graduate programs with the same emphases (and we’ve noted these instances in the list). Not included in this list are “security studies” programs that focus disproportionately on conflict analysis and do not take an explicit peace stance. Likewise, some programs in criminal justice and mediation have been omitted because of their narrower focus on the legal system. This guide will always be a “work in progress.” Feedback is welcome!